Kozuka with Chokaro Summoning a Mule from a Gourd
(Japanese Military Armor)
The gourd at the bottom of the composition frames the figures of the immortal Chokaro (Ch. Zhang Guo [Chang Kuo]) and a boy attendant. They are looking up towards the top of the gourd where Chokaro's magic mule is being released. The mule lived in the gourd until Chokaro needed it. It could carry Chokaro for thousands of miles and did not need to be fed. The artist signed the kozuka on the reverse in part of the gourd cartouche that wraps around to the back.
Inscription
Provenance
Provenance (from the French provenir, 'to come from/forth') is the chronology of the ownership, custody, or location of a historical object.
Henry Walters, Baltimore [date and mode of acquisition unknown]; Walters Art Museum, 1931, by bequest.
Geographies
Japan, Tokyo (Edo)
(Place of Origin)
Japan, Mito (Place of Origin)
Measurements
3 3/4 in. (9.6 cm) (l.)
Credit Line
Acquired by Henry Walters
Location in Museum
Not on view
Accession Number
In libraries, galleries, museums, and archives, an accession number is a unique identifier assigned to each object in the collection.
In libraries, galleries, museums, and archives, an accession number is a unique identifier assigned to each object in the collection.
51.712